Book Review: Quarantine: The Loners by Lex Thomas

Title: Quarantine

Author: Lex Thomas

It was just another ordinary day at McKinley High—until a massive explosion devastated the school. When loner David Thorpe tried to help his English teacher to safety, the teacher convulsed and died right in front of him. And that was just the beginning.

A year later, McKinley has descended into chaos. All the students are infected with a virus that makes them deadly to adults. The school is under military quarantine. The teachers are gone. Violent gangs have formed based on high school social cliques. Without a gang, you’re as good as dead. And David has no gang. It’s just him and his little brother, Will, against the whole school. 
 
In this frighteningly dark and captivating novel, Lex Thomas locks readers inside a school where kids don’t fight to be popular, they fight to stay alive.

My Thoughts

So there has been many many many dystopia type books out as you all know.  I would put this book into that category even though it only focuses on the world inside the school.  As as far as dystopia goes, I found it a good addition to the genre.  It had enough unique points that set it apart from other books.

What I really liked was how the author (authors actually - if you didn't know it's written by two guys  Lex Hrabe and Thomas Voorhies) used the cliques of high school to create the gangs that form in the school.  Being a teacher it was very easy for me to envision something like that actually happening.  And the fact that gang formed instead of them all working together seemed much  more realistic to me.  I don't think I would've bought the story if the kids would've joined all together and made some orderly world where everyone is safe and taken care of.  The chaos in the school was way  more what I'd except - sadly so! I also liked that it dealt less with the reason for the quarantine and more with the effects of it on the kids.  Watching them trying to survive was a great focus instead of them trying to figure out the disease in them.  

As for the main characters - David and Will.  I liked them both.  They were both flawed and very imperfect but in different ways.  That again added into my ability to buy into the story.  They were boys I could see as real and reacted in ways that seemed very real as well.  Now beyond these two there is a huge cast of secondary characters.  I did at points have a hard time keeping track of these characters.  Every once in a while I would confuse them just because they played small parts and you would only meet them for a short bit.  At points I kinda wished for a character guide.  A page with the gangs and their colors listed as well as maybe their leader would've been a bit helpful.  

The tension in the story is huge.  It is a fight for survival from page one, and it never lets up even til the end.  I had to take breaks once in a while because the tension was so intense! But it definitely kept the story moving.  I never ever got bored!  I think this is great for those readers that are more reluctant or struggle to stay with a book.  

Final Thought: Enjoyed it and will pick up the sequel Quarantine: The Saints. 
Ages: 14+ (upper YA for sure)

Book Review: Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am.

Title: Somebody Please Tell Me Who I Am
Author: Harry Mazer and Peter Lerangis

Ben has always had it pretty easy--with no acting experience, he landed the lead in his high school musical, and he's dating the prettiest girl in school. Haunted by memories of 9/11, he makes the decision to enlist in the army--with devastating consequences. Somehow nobody ever thought Ben would be one of the soldiers affected, but after his convoy gets caught in an explosion, Ben is in a coma for two months. When he wakes up, he doesn't know where he is, and he doesn't remember anything about his old life. His family and friends mourn what they see as a loss, but Ben perseveres. Although he will never be the person he once was, this is the story of his struggle and transformation.

My Thoughts

I'll be completely honest.  I didn't love this book.  I didn't hate it by any means either, but I had hoped for more.  It's a super quick read (160 pages).  I finished it in pretty much one setting.  And for me that was part of the problem.  I wanted to feel more connected to all of the main characters, and I didn't because there just wasn't time to create that connection for me.  I didn't care about Ben or Ariel (his girlfriend) enough for it to have a huge impact on me.  I guess I just wanted more.

What was good was that it gave me an understanding of a part of war I've hear a lot about on the news, but really didn't know much about - Traumatic Brain Injuries.  I've heard over and over about these, but never really completely understood what they were.  This book did do a great job in helping me understand what a TBI was and how it affects everyone from the actual soldier to his or her entire family.  I definitely appreciate the book for giving me that.  That alone made it worth my time to read.

The other aspect I really liked was the character of Chris - Ben's brother.  Chris has autism, and he is one of the most realistic examples of autism I've seen.  I also liked that it was played in a matter-of-fact kind of way.  He had autism, and it was something they had to work with, but it wasn't made into a huge issue.  It didn't take over the rest of the story, and I liked that.

All in all - I'd recommend this book to my students.  They might not have the issues I had with it, and I think boys will like that it jumps into the action pretty quickly.

Final thought - I'm glad I read it because I did learn from it.  I just wanted more.  

This review also ran on my students' blog Hooked on Books

Guest Post: Jenny Meyerhoff Author of The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger +GIVEAWAY

Today I have the great excitement of welcoming Jenny Meyerhoff to the blog.  She is the author of the new, super funny, warm-hearted book The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger (see my review later today!)

About the Book
Fifth grader Louie Burger figures that with a goofy name like his, he mustbe destined to be a king of comedy like his idol Lou Lafferman. But he’s only ever performed his stand-up act in his closet, where he and his dad created the most exclusive comedy club ever—if by “exclusive” you mean that no one’s ever allowed inside. With the school talent show coming up, Louie’s wondering if now is his moment to kill (that’s comedian talk for “make actual people laugh”). And maybe, if he brings down the house, he’ll win back his former best friend Nick—who seems to be turning into one of those annoying sporty types—and fend off his dad’s home-improvement obsession, which threatens to remodel Louie’s comedy closet into a private bedroom for his older sister. Barftrocious!

About Jenny
Jenny Meyerhoff  is the author of a young adult novel, Queen of Secrets, and three books for young readers--Sami's Sleepaway Summer, Third Grade Baby, and most recently, The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger, a story about an aspiring stand-up comic with an unusual catch phrase. Unlike Louie, Jenny is not  a comedian, but she does know a lot about barf. After all, she’s a mom. Her three kids love fluffernutters, comedy and reading. Jenny lives in Riverwoods, Illinois with her funny kids and her delightful husband. For more information, visit her website: www.jennymeyerhoff.com.

Welcome Jenny!

Hi. I’m Jenny Meyerhoff, author of the new middle grade novel, The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger. Louie wants to be a stand-up comedian, but he might be too chicken to cross the road and participate in the school talent show. And if that isn’t trouble enough, Louie’s best friend is turning into a sporty kid! He seems to have forgotten that sports are a torture sundae with a tennis ball on top.

If you’re still not sure you want to read about Louie’s adventures, Louie has prepared a little list to convince you. Here it is:

Louie Burger’s Top Five Reasons Why You Should Read

The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger

1. You should read it because it’s a book, and while you could use it as a Frisbee, a weapon or a helmet (if you also had some duct tape), it works best when you use it for its intended purpose.

2. You should read it because I, Louie Burger, do many embarrassing things. If you read about the embarrassing things that I do, you will feel much better about the embarrassing things that you do, since they are probably not as embarrassing. Unfortunately for me.

3. You should read it because it is filled with many great tips about how to be a stand-up comedian, such as, it doesn’t make any sense to have stage fright. It’s not like the stage can bite you or give you a wedgie. 

4. You should read it in order to learn many new and important words, for example, Barftastic, Barfmazing, Barftrocious and Barfnoying. These words are very useful and you will find them popping up in your conversations all the time. 

5. Marshmallow Fluff. (There is Marshmallow Fluff inside this book, and that makes The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger the book equivalent of a Fluffernutter. How can anyone resist that?!)

If you want to know more about Louie, check out Jenny’s website www.jennymeyerhoff.com or visit Louie’s facebook page https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Barftastic-Life-of-Louie-Burger/439990382742618.

If you enjoyed her guest post - you'll LOVE the book.  Watch for my review later today.  

Now up for grab is a copy of the book!

Must be at least 13

Must be a US resident

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review: Wednesdays in the Tower by Jessica Day George

Title: Wednesdays in the Tower
Author: Jessica Day George

A castle that is constantly rearranging itself, and a young royal family sworn to protect it... Celie, Rolf, and their beloved Castle Glower are back in this exciting sequel.

Strange things are afoot in Castle Glower: new rooms, corridors, and even stables keep arriving, even when they aren't needed. Celie's brother Bran, the new Royal Wizard, has his hands full cataloguing an entire storeroom full of exotic and highly dangerous weapons, while Celie has her hands full . . . raising the creature that hatches from a giant egg she finds! Will they be able to find out what's making the Castle behave this way in time?

My Thoughts

Super cute, super fun book.  I really enjoyed this one.  I do have to admit that I hadn't read the first book in the series, Tuesdays at the Castle, yet, but to be honest it didn't affect my understanding of this one too much.  It was just a cute fun read!

I've said it many many times in reviews, but I have a hard time with middle school age girls that seem unrealistic or too precocious.  They just kinda annoy me (sorry!).  But once again I was pleasantly surprised!  I didn't find Celie that in any way.  She was just was just a nice girl.  I would say she was delightful, but that might sound silly.  Ok Ok I'll say it - she was delightful!  As you know I read YA as well as MG, and sometimes it's nice to just read a book where it doesn't have mean girls and high drama.  

The plot:  fun, just fun.  I loved.  From the appearing and disappearing rooms, hallways and towers to Rufus and his behavior.  It was completely enjoyable. I liked that there was mystery because it kept the tension in the book a bit higher.  Had it just been the story of Celia finding the secret in the tower without the mystery surrounding it that they had to figure out the story would not be as good.  

Final Thought: Fun MG novel with charm and sweetness
Best stick-with-you image: Any description of Rufus!
Best for readers who:  Enjoy magic, mystery and fun.
Best for ages: 9-12

For the Guys?  Yes.  The brother and sister has equal time in the story, so it will appeal to both.

Book Tour Review: The Planet Thieves by Dan Krokos +GIVEAWAY

Title: The Planet Thieves
Author: Dan Krokos
Book Obtained: From publisher for honest review

The Planet Thieves is the first thrilling installment of a new middle-grade series by Dan Krokos.

Two weeks ago, thirteen-year-old Mason Stark and seventeen of his fellow cadets from the Academy for Earth Space Command boarded theSS Egypt. The trip was supposed to be a short routine voyage to log their required spacetime for summer quarter.

But routine goes out the airlock when they’re attacked by the Tremist, an alien race who have been at war with humanity for the last sixty years.

With the captain and crew dead, injured, or taken prisoner, Mason and the cadets are all that’s left to warn the ESC. And soon they find out exactly why the Tremist chose this ship to attack: the Egypt is carrying a weapon that could change the war forever.

Now Mason will have to lead the cadets in a daring assault to take back the ship, rescue the survivors, and recover the weapon. Before there isn’t a war left to fight.

My Thoughts

I'll admit it.  I'm not a huge sci fi fan at all.  Well that's a bit of a lie.  I LOVE all the Star Wars movies.  Love them! But when it comes to reading science fiction is not something I run to.  BUT I'm always wanting to try something new, and I'm always looking for books that will hook the boys I teach into reading.  This book fit both of those needs.  And, in the end, I enjoyed the book.

I'm so use to pointing out the awesomeness of strong girl characters that sometimes I forget I need to make sure to find books with strong, courageous  GOOD boys.  This book has that.  Mason is a fantastic character. He's strong, smart, full of courage and just a great kid.  In the risk of sounding cheesy - he's a great role model for boys reading the book.  And what I really like, he's not perfect.  He messes up, teases his sister and doesn't know all the answers.  What's great is none of that slows him down.  If something goes wrong, he pushes past it and keeps working.  I liked that.

As for the plot, I enjoyed it.  Lots of tension and lots of action.  It doesn't slow down much and that was good.  It was especially good for someone like me that doesn't love sci fi.  The action pulled me along any time I got hung up trying to keep all the new lingo and aliens straight.  As I reader I'm not good at learning new stuff like that.  Thankfully I found it pretty easy in this book!  I wasn't overly slowed down or distracted by having to figure out this futuristic world.  The plot contained enough description to keep it pictured in my head without over doing it.  

Oh did I mention that there's plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing and thinking and wonderful right up until the very last page??? Well there is.  Love that.  

Final thought: Great book even for people who are in to sci fi!
Best stick-with-you image: The first description of what the Tremist.  They sounded creepy!
Best for readers who: Like actions mixed with twists and turns
Best for ages: 9-12

For the Guys?  For sure!!!

The Giveaway

The publisher has offered up a copy of The Planet  Thieves.

Just fill out the Rafflecopter

Must be at least 13 and a US resident

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Giveaway at Hooked on Books

Hey all my students have the first giveaway up on their blog.  

It's for a copy of the first two books in the Tomorrow Girls Series.  

Check it out HERE.

As my blog shuts down, you might want to follow them.  They do the writing, posting, editing etc.  Great place to hear real thoughts from real kids reading the books written for them!